Yale Club NYC Wedding Photos | NYC Wedding Photographer

Set on Vanderbilt Avenue directly across from Grand Central Terminal, the Yale Club of New York City is one of Midtown Manhattan's most elegant private clubs. Its wood-paneled lounges, carpeted staircases and chandeliered ballroom feel like stepping into another era, which made it the perfect home for this Roaring Twenties wedding on New Year's Eve.

The grooms leaned into the theme completely. Guests arrived in flapper dresses, fedoras, feather boas and beaded headbands, and the club was already dressed for the holidays with garland and lights winding up its staircases. It was glamorous, a little theatrical and full of personality, exactly like the couple.

Portraits at the club and Grand Central

We started with portraits inside the club, on a tufted leather Chesterfield sofa, in a vintage wooden phone booth and in the club's brass-trimmed elevator. Then we walked across Vanderbilt Avenue into Grand Central, where the grooms stood still in the middle of the Main Concourse as holiday travelers streamed past them, and shared a quiet moment on the balcony above. Back outside, we crossed 44th Street with yellow cabs rolling by, and as the sky turned blue we photographed them high above Midtown with the city's lit-up towers behind them.

A ballroom ceremony

The ceremony took place in the club's ballroom beneath crystal chandeliers and ornate plaster ceilings, framed by boxwood topiaries and banks of white hydrangeas. Their officiant, in a silver gown and white fur stole, set a warm and joyful tone, and the grooms' first kiss as a married couple drew a roar from their guests.

The celebration

At the reception, tall palms and candlelit tables with black and silver place settings carried the Art Deco mood, along with a white tiered cake trimmed in gold. There were heartfelt toasts, a first dance and dances with family in front of glowing Christmas trees. Then the showgirls arrived in feathered headdresses, the confetti cannons went off and the whole room rang in the new year together.

Planning a wedding at the Yale Club

If you're considering the Yale Club for your own wedding, a few tips from behind the camera:

Start with the club. As a private club, the Yale Club typically hosts events through its members, so reach out to its events team early to confirm what's needed for your date.
Use Grand Central. The terminal is a two-minute walk from the club, so iconic portraits in the Main Concourse fit easily into your timeline. Twenty to thirty minutes is plenty, and quieter hours are easier than the evening rush.
Plan around winter light. In late December the sun sets around 4:30 p.m., so for outdoor city portraits in daylight, schedule them early in the afternoon. After dark, the lit-up skyline becomes a beautiful backdrop of its own.
Explore the whole building. The lounges, staircases, phone booths and elevators give you a variety of classic, characterful backdrops without ever stepping outside, which is ideal in cold or rainy weather.

We are so happy for these two and wish them a lifetime of love, and many more New Year's Eves as glamorous as this one.